The use of heat pumps is a more environmentally friendly alternative to traditional HVAC systems, and is facing obstacles in the U.S. It is negatively affecting President Biden’s climate goals. Slow installation rates are due to factors like rising interest rates, and inflation. While the Inflation Reduction Act offers tax credits, they often don’t offer the high installation costs. Especially for lower income households. Delays in implementing more substantial rebate programs makes the issue worse. Despite potential savings, awareness of the incentives are still low in America. There needs to be more effort to make incentives more popular, increase awareness, and address challenges to accelerate heat pump usage and go towards clean energy.

To overcome these challenges and accelerate the transition to cleaner energy solutions  there is a need for more mainstream policies, better accessibility to incentives, and public awareness of adopting heat pumps. Also, investing in infrastructure to support the adoption of heat pumps. Such as expanding training programs for HVAC technicians and contractors. This will make it so that there are enough skilled professionals available to install and maintain heat pump systems. By addressing these challenges we can create a transition to cleaner energy solutions like heat pumps, which ultimately promote sustainable energy practices.

The article is about how America’s current struggle to catch up in clean energy. Especially in electric vehicle battery production. Chinese companies hold a significant advantage. Ford has a plan to partner with a Chinese battery maker as a study, it argues that collaboration with the Chinese is essential for American companies to get the knowledge and stay competitive. While some politicians like Senator Joe Manchin and Governor Glenn Youngkin show concerns about national security and dependence on China The article emphasizes the historical events of collaboration with other countries in technological advancement. It ends with rejecting Chinese expertise would ultimately hinder American innovation and competitiveness in crucial industries.

The article makes a good argument about the necessity of collaboration with the Chinese  in clean energy. Particularly in electric vehicle battery production. In today’s globally connected economy, technological advancements rely on global cooperation. By partnering with Chinese companies, American companies like Ford can access crucial information that is currently lacking. It allows them to develop competitive products and contribute to the transition to clean energy. Encouraging collaboration and sharing knowledge between nations is essential for advancing sustainable technologies and maintaining global competitiveness.

The article gives multiple ecological technologies expected to come to the USA in 2024. Including the increased use of renewable energy, energy efficient technologies, sustainable transportation options, and sustainable agriculture practices. These have the potential to contribute to protecting the environment by reducing the need of fossil fuels, reducing energy consumption and emissions, and improving soil health. Overall, the article presents a hopeful outlook on the future of technology. It emphasizes the potential for innovative solutions to address environmental challenges and make a sustainable future.

I agree with the article’s views of the new promising technologies that will come to the USA in 2024. The acceptance of renewable energy, advancements in energy efficiency technologies, and sustainable transportation gives us an opportunity to reduce our carbon footprint. The focus on sustainable agriculture practices gives an approach to minimize resource consumption. The mention of additional technologies such as artificial intelligence makes the potential for new solutions to address big environmental challenges. Overall I agree with the article’s optimism for the future of ecological technology and its role in building a more sustainable and resilient world.

The article is about a range of new technologies made to drive sustainability in 2024. It highlights the role of artificial intelligence in improving energy efficiency and making better progress towards sustainable solutions. For example affordable sodium-ion batteries and recyclable plastics. Another sustainable technology is advancements in solar power including the surpassing of hydropower in electricity generation in the United States. This is a significant shift towards renewable energy sources. Overall, the article emphasizes the growing solutions available to address environmental challenges and wants the application of technology to secure a sustainable future.

The article’s hopeful outlook on the future of sustainability resonates with me. The potential of the new technologies in making a more environmentally better world makes me excited. The integration of artificial intelligence in material discovery and green chemistry shows how versatile AI is in pushing us toward sustainable solutions. The article’s focus on solar power’s hold on electricity and the exploration of space-based solar power shows the strides we are taking towards renewable energy on both earth and space scales.

The article talks about five sustainable technologies for 2024, CO2 absorption from plastic waste, innovative wastewater treatment using nanocomposites, sustainable shelter through 3D-printed construction with CO2-converted cement, supercharged solar cells, and boundless clean energy from nuclear fusion projects like EAST and ITER. It wants the reader to know the necessity of industry collaboration, long-term planning, and transparent communication to drive these advancements. The article explains how they want industry leaders to integrate sustainable practices and invest in a long-term vision.

I agree with the article’s perspective on the role of technological innovation sustainability. The advancements of CO2 absorption to nuclear fusion research shows the potential for technology to fight environmental challenges. As the urgency of climate change becomes increasingly important it is important for industry leaders to use sustainable practices. Also invest in research and development. And work collectively towards a more sustainable environment. The article wants us to not only reduce environmental risks but also unlock new opportunities for a better environment.

Shankland, S. (2023, September 8). Solar Installations in the US Expected to Set a Record in 2023

Retrieved January 29, 2024 from,

https://www.cnet.com/home/energy-and-utilities/solar-installations-expected-to-set-a-record-in-20

23/

Solar panels have been the go-to renewable energy source in recent years, with a 52% spike in solar panel usage just last year in the United States. Solar energy allows society to move away from the use of fossil fuels and turn to alternative energy sources, like that of solar which has no cap on its use. Not only is solar an environmentally friendly alternative energy source, but it is also good economically, President of the Solar Energy Industries Association, Abigail Ross Hopper, states, “The solar and storage industry is delivering abundant clean energy that is generating tens of billions of dollars of private investment, and this is just the tip of the iceberg.” Having both economic and environmental positives, solar energy is one of the future sources of energy in the United States, increasing in usage each year since they became popular.

I view the use of solar panels as a win for the United States. Having a 52% increase on the installation of a renewable that also reduces the energy cost for families, it seems like a great renewable energy source to have. I think that if solar was more available to everyone, we would be able to use it to its full capacity, but due to its current installation cost, I can see it only impacting our use of fossil fuels on minor levels. Hopefully it will become more and more widespread as time goes on, which it for sure seems like it is with the 52% increase.

Ataman, D. (2023, November 16). Building a defensible vertical farm is more than technology. 

Retrieved January 27, 2024 from,

https://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Article/2023/11/16/watch-on-demand-building-a-defensible-

Vertical-farm-is-more-than-technology

Vertical farming techniques used in the United States allow for “water reuse and reclamation systems, using energy optimization system,” beneficiary aspects in the world of agriculture and farming. Factors are manipulated in the vertical farming environment for allow for the same quality of produce and a much quicker product than those produced through agriculture on farmland. Along with greater quality of produce, vertical farming allows for less space being taken up by agriculture, clearing any concerns farming may bring the United States in the near future.

I think the use of vertical farming can be very influential as the country moves forward and has to adapt to changes brought about by climate change. Lessening our farmland and moving to vertical farms that don’t even need to be outside can be very effective in mitigating the effects of agriculture on our atmosphere and climate. Ultimately, I think vertical farming can have a positive impact on our agricultural system and has few negatives environmentally-wise.

Gardner, T. (2023, December 14). US awards up to $890 million to carbon capture projects at gas, coal 

plants. Retrieved January 27, 2024 from, 

https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/us-awards-up-890-million-carbon-capture-

projects-gas-coal-plants-2023-12-14/

The U.S. highlights its push to mitigate the effects of climate change by endorsing carbon capturing by allocating $890 million dollars to carbon capturing. Carbon Capturing machines, also known as CCS are able to withdraw close to 1% of the U.S. carbon emissions annually, however, the U.S. allocating more money towards carbon capturing technology gives hope that it may have a big impact on mitigating the effects of climate change. Although the carbon is being extracted from the atmosphere, however, it is being pushed back into the ground and into oil which allows for more extraction of crude oil.

More funding towards Carbon Capturing technology seems great, but I don’t think it will have as great an impact in mitigating climate change as do other technology. Just under 1% is being captured at the moment, which although is some, is not near enough to make a change. On top of this, pushing the carbon back into the ground and into oil to allow for the United States to harvest crude oil seems like a positive feedback loop of carbon being released into the atmosphere. I think carbon capturing is great when it’s a negative feedback loop, but until then I think there are other viable strategies to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Cart, J. (2023, October 16). ‘A massive enterprise’: California’s offshore wind farms are on a fast track.

Retrieved January 26, 2024 from, 

https://calmatters.org/environment/2023/10/california-offshore-wind-humboldt/

The push for a 100% renewable energy power grid in California has pushed them to become more ambitious in ways to attain this renewable energy. California is planning to push out offshore windmill farms, but unlike those seen off the coast of Rhode Island and China, these windmill farms will be far off the California coast in deep waters. This is because the greatest winds occur far off the California coast before they converge inland. California sees the “offshore wind farms producing 25 gigawatts of electricity by 2045, powering 25 million homes and providing about 13% of the power supply.” However because of the distance from the mainland, “miles of undersea transmission lines, expanded ports, new or upgraded onshore substations and electrical distribution networks.” Although pushing for renewable sources, California will have to burn through fossil fuels to make it happen when producing these farms, a hit they are willing to take for the long term future. 

I’m interested in seeing how far offshore windmill farms will affect our power sources. I’ve seen offshore wind farms before, but this farm seems to be a lot different than the rest. I can see it being a success, however. Although being far offshore I think given the infrastructure that will have to be produced, it will be able to work swiftly. What worried me though is how large-scale this project can be if new infrastructure is needed when applying these windmill farms to places other than Humbolt, where they are going right now. Ultimately the use of windmill farms will give us better renewable energy sources, however, I think there may be a scalability issue. I’m interested in seeing how this pans out in the future.

Cart, J. (2023, November 29). Will ocean waves be California’s new source of clean energy?

Retrieved January 26, 2024 from, 

https://calmatters.org/environment/2023/11/ocean-energy-waves-california/

In October, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill allowing for the state to begin the production and greater research of marine energy systems, in essence, the state will be using the waves and tides of the ocean to generate energy. The project still has a long way to go, projected to contribute to the state’s “all-renewable electric grid by 2045.” Right now there are only a few scattered small-scale test sites for this technology throughout the west coast. However, according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, “wave and tide energy resources that are available in the U.S. with current technology are equivalent to 57% of 2019’s domestic energy production.” Ultimately the technology is shining a positive light on renewable energy sources.

 The state of California’s push to achieve new forms of renewable energy seems like a great stride to move away from fossil fuels and help mitigate the effects of climate change. Although the project is just getting started, granted that waves are concurring throughout the coast, I can see marine technology becoming one of the biggest energy suppliers along both the east and west coast of the United States. I really like how, unlike wind energy, this form of energy can be applicable throughout most parts of the world given the ocean covers the majority of the globe. ​​However, I wish the government would fund it more as the “2023 federal budget for ocean waves energy is $123 million.” Ultimately I think that relying on marine power is a great way to shift away from fossil fuels.